Garco Commissioners Step On The Gas

June 3rd, 2008 at 04:06pm Post Staff 43

From: Scott Chaplin
Date: Tue, 3 Jun 2008 10:25:03 -0700

Hello Friends and Neighbors,

I am strongly urging all of you who live in Garfield County (as well as those of you in neighboring counties who care about the future of the region) to come the the River Valley Ranch House in Carbondale this Friday at 5:30 pm. County Commissioner candidates Steve Carter and Steve Bershenyi will be on hand to introduce their platforms and answer questions.

I would consider this race to be one of the most important local political races in recent history in Western Colorado. It is also one of the most exciting because we have the potential to bring about one of the most profound political changes in over 30 years for our area. Garfield County politics has been dominated by a variety of Republicans who have almost blindly supported any and all demands from the gas industry. This has resulting in a great deal of environmental degradation that will continue haunting the County for years to come. The County leaders have also done little to support intelligent growth management, affordable housing or public transportation; just to name a few important causes.

Even if you already know how you are going to vote, there are three very good reasons for you to attend:

1) The candidates need to hear how you feel about the issues. In is still early in the race and both of these candidates are still developing their stances on many issues. Your input will help educate them on what is important to voters in the eastern half of the county. And you can hand them a donation in person and put a big smile on their faces!

2) The candidates need your moral and financial support. As a former politician I can attest to the importance of having a good turn out for such events. November is still a long way off and a good turn out now will be inspiring and energizing way for the candidates to start. The event will go until 7 pm, so even if you can only stop by briefly to shake hands, please do so -- and bring a friend. And bring your check book too!

3) More than anything, I think these races will boil down to personal connections. The Democrats and Republicans combined rarely comprise more that seventy percent of the voters in most Western Colorado communities, so really it is the Independents who can swing any election. That is why I am hoping the debate does not boil down to Republican Vs. Democrat. In my opinion, the race is much more likely to go the way I want it to only if the debate stays focused on the issues and the Progressive Democrats team up with the "Yellow Dog" Democrats, Libertarians, Greens, Blue Dog Democrats, Green/Independent minded Republicans and, most of all, the Independents. The Independents are more likely to vote for people they know, or for people they think are reasonable, or for people who are supported by people they respect. That is why I think it is so important for people like you (my esteemed readers) to make a personal connection with the candidates so that you can speak in a heartfelt and supportive way about them with all of your friends and acquaintances. Did I mention that you could also make a donation at the event? (As much as I hate to admit it, money is a very important part of politics.)

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Garfield County's political balance:

We truly have a chance to change the political balance of power in Garfield County in a single election and keep it going in a progressive direction for at least the next 4 years. Evidence that the balance might change began with Tresi Houpt's election as a Garfield County Commisioner in 2002 and has been echoed by more recent elections, including her 2006 race in which she won with 62% of the vote. As awesome as she is, she is always out Republican Garfield County Commissioner John Martin has now served three terms, but there are indications that his support is weakening. In the last election, Democrat Greg Jeung lost to John Martin by less than 1% ( a little over 200 votes), which was Martin's closest race to date. Rifle Democratic Mayor Keith Lambert also narrowly lost to Larry McCown (who has also held his post for 3 terms) by just over 2%. Democrats gained two other new positions in Garfield County in 2006 -- Clerk and Recorder (Jean Alberico) and Assessor ( John Gorman). By gaining both County Commissioner seats in 2008 the gas industry will get a strong message that the rule of the game are changing -- and a lot of other great things will happen!

It won't be an easy race:

While two very qualified and progressive candidates have stepped forward for the Democrats, the Republicans also have relatively strong candidates and they now realize that they can't take Garfield County for granted any more. With three elections behind him, John Martin has a strong following. Mike Samson, a Republican running in District 3 against Mike Samson, looks strong "on paper" to me. He was born in Glenwood Springs and has spent the last 25 years teaching American Government in the Re-2 School District and at CMC. Samson served on the Rifle City Council from 1979 to 1983. The Garfield Republicans may be edging closer to a change of heart of gas issues and may pull a "Schwarzenegger" and try to be greener than the Democrats (this is an emerging national trend -- e.g. Newt Gingrich's recent book "A Contract with the Earth."). I doubt that Martin will take this route, but Samson might. In recent years, voter turn out in Carbondale and Glenwood Springs has given progressive candidates the winning edge. New Castle seems to now be the tipping point for the County's political balance, with all communities west of it still voting mostly Republican. Both commissioner positions are elected at large, so voters anywhere in the county can support them. As a local political junkie, I am always shocked when taking to voters after elections and finding out how many people only vote for state and national level candidates, simply because they are not familiar with the local issues or politicians. I am counting on YOU all to help change this -- educate yourselves and your acquaintances, and make sure you remind your friends to vote. If you haven't been active in local politics, now is a very good time to start. Please contact the candidates and sign up to volunteer or help out in whatever way you can.

Steve Carter believes that the current County Government doesn't work because the leaders (the majority anyway) don't listen. Mr. Carter is a former Carbondale resident, has lived in Garfield County since 1971 and was appointed as a County judge in 1972. He served as a judge until 2004. He supports public transportation, affordable housing, animal control, and planning for growth. He is very concern about vacant second homes, the needs of seniors, recreation opportunities, developing all sectors of our economy, as well as business and jobs. His web site is: www.stevecarter.us

Stephen Bershenyi believes that Garfield County government needs a change of direction. He has great concern and is passionate about the issues presently facing Garfield County and supports affordable housing, more local control over gas exploration, open space and improved planning and a number of other important issues. Stephen was born into a ranching family in Glenwood Springs in February of 1948. He is currently an artist-blacksmith with his studio in Carbondale. His grandfather, who served as Garfield County clerk from 1918 to 1938, helped build the Glenwood Springs train station. His web site is
www.stephenbershenyi.com

Thank you all for your time. Please feel free to forward this message to anyone you think might be interested. My apologies to those of you on my list who live out of the area or who may receive duplicates of this email.

Sincerely,

Scott Chaplin

PS: The Ranch House is located at 444 River Valley Ranch Drive in Carbondale (just off of Highway 133 near the old high school) at River Valley Ranch. If you think you will attend, please email Nancy Smith at
nancyva@sopris.net

P.S.S. If you absolutely can't make it, you can still send donations to:

Committee to Elect Stephen Bershenyi, PO Box 3108, Glenwood Springs, CO, 81602

and

Committee to Elect Steve Carter, P.O. Box 341, Rifle, Colorado 81650

Entry Filed under: Environment, Glenwood Springs, Colorado, Garfield County, The West, United Post